Two of the biggest talent agencies in Hollywood are merging. Creative Artists Agency and ICM Partners are joining forces in the biggest consolidation move since the WME and IMG merger in 2014.
Putting CAA and ICM Partners under the same roof will combine the worlds of entertainment, publishing, and sports. CAA will acquire ICM, potentially strengthening the agency and its clients when negotiating with studios over compensation.
“Today’s storytellers, athletes, thought leaders, and trendsetters who can move, inspire, and attract large global audiences have [an] unprecedented opportunity and ability to achieve their goals and aspirations,” said CAA’s Bryan Lourd, Kevin Huvane, and Richard Lovett in a statement. “The strategic combination of CAA and ICM bolsters our collective resources, expertise, and relationships to deliver even more opportunities for our world-class clients to build their careers and their brands across multiple disciplines and platforms in an evolving marketplace. Our strong financial position enables us to continue to expand and diversify our businesses, with service and representation remaining central to what we do and who we are. We’re fortunate to have a partner in ICM who shares our commitment to the widest and most inclusive vision possible for what our clients and company can accomplish together.”
Both ICM and CAA represent clients in the entertainment world, including film, television, theater, and podcasting. With the merger, CAA will also acquire ICM’s extensive roster in the fields of book publishing and sports.
CAA clients include Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg, and Ava DuVernay. ICM’s clients include Shonda Rhimes, Samuel L. Jackson, and Pete Davidson.
“We’re thrilled to partner and combine forces with the talented CAA team,” said ICM’s Chris Silbermann, who will join CAA’s shareholder board, in a statement. “Together, we will build upon our accomplishments and entrepreneurial spirit, and continue to demonstrate an unwavering commitment to the best interests of our clients, as well as empowering new, diverse voices within the industry.”
The merger was expected to close at the end of 2021. But according to The Hollywood Reporter, the merger will now close in the second quarter of 2022. The deal is delayed because it is currently being scrutinized by the Department of Justice's antitrust division. Despite the additional hurdle, Lourd told THR that he is “very confident” the deal will go through. Details about what this means in terms of integrating leaders and staffers, office space, and potential layoffs have not been disclosed.
In an interview with Variety, CAA’s Lovett said the merger creates a way to strengthen the talent side by creating a larger agency that can go toe-to-toe with studios in negotiations—especially now that streaming has changed how talent is compensated. Lovett referenced CAA’s decision to back client Scarlett Johansson in her ongoing legal battle with Disney.
Scarlett Johansson’s Disney Lawsuit Could Change How Actors Are Paid“What is indisputable is that we have more resources as a result of working together for clients than ever before,” Lovett said. “And in that is the need for clients to have really strong, committed advocacy in order to support the business—and ever more resources, because they have ever more opportunities. And we’re laser-focused on that. It’s been our game plan. We’ve declared it, we’ve lived it, [and] we have strategy going forward to enhance it. And that’s where this company is.”
The merger has SAG-AFTRA’s support. “SAG-AFTRA welcomes any change that results in increased negotiating power for talent as they bargain individual deals with the multibillion-dollar corporations that produce content,” said the union’s national executive director, Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, in a statement. “We will carefully scrutinize this combination of two storied talent agencies to ensure that performers will benefit from and are not disadvantaged by the deal.”
What this acquisition means both for big-name talent and for non–A-list actors looking for representation beyond the big three (which also includes WME and the United Talent Agency) remains to be seen; but it’s definitely clear that tides are shifting in Hollywood.